The Oak Ridge Police Department and Police Chief Robin Smith are offering a $1,000 reward for information that helps investigators identify the baby boy found dead near the river bank along Melton Lake Greenway on Thursday, March 26.
The reward includes $500 from the ORPD, and Smith will match that with another $500.
Wyatt’s race has not been determined. Police officers have not been able to tell from his physical appearance. His umbilical cord was still attached before he was placed in the water, Smith said in a Facebook video Thursday. A piece of clothing was with Wyatt, although it’s not being described for investigative reasons.
The baby boy is being called Wyatt, or “little warrior,” Smith said.
Wyatt’s body was found near the bank along Melton Lake Greenway, which is along the Clinch River, just north of the Edgemoor Road bridge.
DNA samples have been taken by the medical examiner, Smith said. The ORPD doesn’t know when will it get the DNA results back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ORPD does not have any leads in the case yet. Investigators are asking for tips and information that could help identify Wyatt.
On Thursday, April 2, ORPD officers and the Oak Ridge Fire Department set up a memorial in baby Wyatt’s name near the parking area on Melton Lake at Edgemoor Road.
Local residents have offered to pay for all of Wyatt’s funeral expenses. But Wyatt can’t be buried and put to rest until he is identified, Smith said.
If you have information to share with the ORPD, you can contact the Oak Ridge Police Department by phone at (865) 425-4399, by email at [email protected], on Facebook at OakRidgePoliceDepartment, on Twitter at OakRidgePolice, or at the Oak Ridge Police Department website at http://oakridgetn.gov/department/ORPD/Home. Information can be given anonymously.
See the Facebook Live video from Thursday, April 9, here.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
You can contact John Huotari, owner and publisher of Oak Ridge Today, at (865) 951-9692 or [email protected]
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